1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a technology for transmitting image data through a prescribed communications network.
2. Related Art
With the spread of the Internet seen in recent years, it has become quite common for image data shot with a digital camera or the like to be sent in the form of an e-mail attachment.
However, sending image data in the form of an e-mail attachment typically requires proficiency in computer operation. Thus, for a user not experienced with operating a computer, the task of attaching image data to an e-mail represents a very advanced task.
With regard to this issue, JP-A-2005-136072 discloses a technology for transmitting image data using a facsimile apparatus. The facsimile apparatus displays a list of image data and e-mail addresses on the display unit, and enables the user to select from the list a recipient and image data for transmission.
However, in some instances, it is difficult to specify image data for transmission from among that listed on the display unit. Because the display unit of a facsimile or similar apparatus is quite small in most cases.
In conventional facsimile transmission, the image acquired by the sending terminal is converted to an audio signal, which is sent to the receiving terminal over a voice communications network. As this voice communications network, it is possible to employ the ordinary phone system used in the past, or more recently, to employ a phone system that utilizes the Internet (an IP phone system). For example, JP-A-2003-309701 proposes a facsimile apparatus that utilizes transmission of audio signals over an IP phone system, for facsimile transmission via a network.
Some facsimile apparatus of this kind have a communications control apparatus installed, with communications being controlled by the communications control apparatus. Some of these installed communications control apparatus are used as hardware keys. However, where an image is sent by the communications control apparatus on the transmitting end, and the image by itself is then received as-is and printed out by the communications control apparatus on the receiving end, there are instances in which printing takes place with the wrong paper size, resulting in waste of ink and paper. There are also instances where, when the communications control apparatus on the transmitting end has transmitted an image, the image is received by the communications control apparatus on the receiving end with no indication as to the sender's intent besides paper size mentioned previously, and while a message could be sent on an additional sheet, this will not be sufficient in some instances.
For example, even where a message representing the sender's intent has been written on an initial cover page, the communications control apparatus on the receiving end will simply continue to receive the data of the second and subsequent pages as-is, and in some instances it will not be possible to receive and print the data in the form that reflects the sender's intent. An additional problem is that in some instances the transmitted message is a simple one that, if the communications control apparatus on the receiving end has an LCD screen, could be viewed on the screen without having to print out the message entered on the cover sheet on one extra page, and in such instances printing out the message would be a waste.